ABSTRACT

In this chapter, I acknowledge the educational history of Norway regarding the Sámi, and I argue that there are three at times opposing main claims and issues for Sámi education today. These three also work to structure the chapter: First, Sámi students have the right to an education that ensures and develops Sámi languages, culture and society. Second, the educational system and implementation of Sámi rights seem to struggle to deal with Sámi diversity. Third, integrating and/or applying knowledge and perspectives of the Sámi and Indigenous peoples in the majority school is a complex matter and requires extensive competence and resources within school and teacher education. I look into the three claims separately, providing cases and analyses of curricula and textbooks, and discuss them also as connected to each other. In the discussion, I will bring to the table the approaches and concepts of cultural interface, Indigenous métissage, pedagogy of discomfort and pedagogy of hope. The goal is to see Sámi education in a bigger context both of pedagogical theorization and Indigenous studies globally.